Mumbai: Parle Products has launched a new TVC campaign, focusing on ?Mindful Eating and Soulful Living? for their new range of healthy biscuits ? Simply Good, which consists of three products: Simply Good Digestive cookies, Simply Good Cream Cracker, Simply Good Digestive Slimz biscuits.

Catering to the health conscious consumer, the Simply Good range of biscuits focuses on the little joys of eating healthy. The TVC is about simply enjoying what you eat, rather than worrying about whether it?s healthy or not. It?s about how you feel and what you experience while eating that really matters and translates into a good life.

Speaking about the TVC, Parle Products general manager marketing Pravin Kulkarnii said, ?The TVC is all about simplifying life and staying close to nature, which is exactly what the brand represents. With this new ?Simply Good? range, we encourage our valued consumers to live a healthy and fulfilling life.?

Parle Products deputy marketing manager Mayank Shah added, ?We did an extensive research on what our customers want and are proud to present the ?Simply Good? range that is both delicious and healthy. Indian consumers are well aware about their wellbeing and there is an increase in healthy food consumption, which is becoming a part of their lifestyle. With the Simply Good Range, we are offering our consumers a choice of healthy snacks without compromising on the delectable taste.?

Parle?s Simply Good Digestive cookies are available across India in two packs sizes. The 250 gms pack is available at Rs 50, whereas the 100 gms pack is available at Rs 20.

A good state of Mind is what matters to stay connected to God everywhere. Priya Mishra, Vice President, Programming, Sony Entertainment Television speaks about her spirituality to Richa Dubey.

By Birth?

I am from a north Indian Brahmin family.

Religion?

I don't belong to a family which is overtly religious. They are not into a lot of worshipping and Puja. I was not aware of God until I grew up. My awareness about existence of God happened much later. I was not brought up with the whole thought that there is a God. I saw my parents praying but I never did.

I pray when things go wrong. Sometimes those prayers are for me and sometimes for others. When my beloved ones are in trouble then I pray for them. I do not do idol worship. Sometimes you pray for the world also. For me there is no definite time to pray.

I am not a very religious person so I don't know what it is. For my parents God was a very personal thing. We were never taken to Kirten or Satsang and even if they went I don't know about it. At a very early age I went to the hostel so probably because of that also I was not much aware of all these things. I think Religion is something that disciplines you. It teaches you to speak the truth, do good.
Like Hinduism teaches you that what goes around comes around and reincarnation. So in a way it disciplines us so that we do no harm to others. Similarly, other religions have there own theories that prevent people from sinning. So religion is meant to make us lead the right path. It does not always mean bhajan kirten because I have hardly seen that side of religion.

Values?

Basic values are very important and they also come from religion, which are inculcated in us by our elders and over a period of time we learn and understand it.

Be honest, don't cheat are things that you acquire in your upbringing. My parents got influenced by these thoughts so they want me to learn them. This is how basic values come to us. Humanity gave a code of conduct which came to be known as religion. These are all values which are very important.

Belief?
I have not seen God. For me my parents are the representation of God. They are the ones who got me into this world. So my strongest belief is that my parents are God to me. I lost my father when I was very young and I strongly believe that he is up there acting like a protective shield to me. When things go wrong I close my eyes and I see him.

Rituals you follow?

I don't follow any rituals. I do not fast on any occasion. I do nothing because my childhood was such. It is not very important for me.

Spiritual guidance?

If you do good things then you are automatically guided by God. He is connected to you only if you do good things and don't harm others. The kind of profession we are in, one should ideally get mad after reaching home but that does not happen because I think good thoughts. As a nation also we are very spiritual. We have never cracked under pressure like many other countries. That also helps to overcome any trauma. We have a spiritual reason to justify everything. Materialism never broke us down. A good state of mind is not made overnight.

Divine visit?

As a child I visited Vaishno Devi with my father. Since my childhood was entirely in Uttar Pradesh, I visited a lot of religious places like Banares and Allahabad. We were never forced or asked to pray. Also I was too young for it.

You can pray anytime of the day and need not go somewhere specifically for that. As a kid it was more like a picnic for me because we went as family get togethers. But I have been to many such places and enjoyed the experience.

Positive thinking?

Optimism is very important in life. The eagerness to live life and be optimistic about everything is the core of our survival. Even the richest cannot be happy if they are not optimistic about life. Earlier, I was not a very optimistic person. As a teenager I had a tough time facing my mood swings and I used to feel low very often but my elder brother inculcated in me the spirit of never say die. He taught me to get up every morning and tell myself that today is a great day. Eventually it worked for me and now I am happy go lucky.
There can be no set date to be happy. You cannot say that The day I buy a car I will be happy. We cannot demarcate it but we can try to be happy most of the time. We should be happy, come what may. This is optimism and this changed me. I have seen many celebrities who are not happy, even if they have everything they desired they are not happy. It is because of lack of optimism.

Destiny?

Everything is destined. I was completely unaware of destiny until my father's death. His death made me believe in destiny. From that day onward I started believing that few things are just destined and one cannot change them, no matter what. Had it not been pre-destined then it would not have happened the way it happened. He was too young to die. A few people say that there is no need to work because everything is pre-destined but I feel hard work is also a part of destiny. Destiny is an unknown path and we have to move forward to find our goals. I strongly believe in destiny.

A few people get things easily but I always worked hard to achieve everything. It was destined to happen that way so I worked hard. But we cannot do anything when it comes to emotional matters like birth, death. In such cases everything is controlled by destiny.

Karmology?

Karma is a part of destiny.

Relaxing Spiritually?

I used to do yoga since my childhood but these days due to work I have not been able to do it. Other than that, when I have to relax I listen to music. I have not been for vacations for long. For me, every day is a vacation as long as you enjoy your work. I do not think that I will be happy when I go to London for vacation, no. For me going for a movie or to a mall with family and friends is also a vacation because I enjoy that and I am happy doing that.

Otherwise, Yoga is the best. It is scientific and has a very good effect on the body and mind. The best way to relax spiritually is to think good of others and be fair to them. You get disturbed only when you do bad to others and when people do bad to you. Such situations should be avoided. Sanity should prevail.
Seek to cultivate a buoyant, joyous sense of the crowded kindnesses of God in your daily life. Alexander MacLaren

This verse is inscribed on a stone tablet next to a polo ground in Skardu Pakistan, north of Kashmir, near the fabled Silk Route. In one ancient sentence, it epitomises the feelings of many polo players today.

Many scholars believe that polo, in its antiquated form, originated among the Iranian tribes some time before Darius of Persia and his cavalry extended the Achaemenid dynasty rule to the greater Persian Empire.

Throughout Asian antiquity, from Japan to Egypt, from India to the Byzantine Empire, Polo and its variants were the nearest equivalents to a "national sport". However, as the great Eastern empires decayed and collapsed in the Middle Ages following their decimation by the Mongol hordes, so too disappeared the glittering court life of which polo was so important a part; and, the game itself was preserved only in remote villages.

The contemporary sport
Polo is now an active sport in 77 countries, and although its tenure as an Olympic sport was limited to 1900 -1939, in 1998 the International Olympic Committee recognized it as a sport with a bona fide international governing body, the Federation of International Polo.
Polo is, however, played professionally in only a few countries, notably Argentina, England, Pakistan, India, Australia, and the United States. Polo is unique among team sports in that amateur players, often the team patrons, routinely hire and play alongside the sport's top professionals.
Argentina dominates the professional sport, as its polo team has been the uninterrupted world champion since 1949 and is today the source of most of the world's 10-goal (i.e., top-rated) players.

The game

Rules
Polo requires two teams of players mounted on horseback to play the game. When playing outdoors each team has four players, whereas arena polo is restricted to three players per team. The object of the game is to score the most goals by hitting the ball through the goal.
A game is divided into periods, called chukkas-since 1898, from Hindi chakkar from Sanskrit chakra "circle, wheel", compare chakka -of 7 minutes, and depending on the rules of the particular tournament or league, a game may have 4, 6 or 8 chukkas; 6 chukkas are most common. Games are often played with a handicap in which the sums of the individual players' respective handicaps are compared. The team with the larger handicap is given free points before the start of the game.
The game begins with the two teams of four lined up each team in line forming two rows with the players in order 1, 2, 3, 4 facing the umpire in the center of the playing field. There are two mounted umpires on the field and a referee standing on the sidelines. At the beginning of a game, one of the umpires bowls the ball in hard between the two teams.

Player positions
Each position assigned to a player has certain responsibilities:
" Number One is usually the novice or weakest player on the team, but the position is one of the most difficult to play. Number One's job is to score goals as well as neutralize the opponents Number Four (defensive) player.
" Number Two needs a fast pony, a keen eye, and high maneuverability as his job is to get hold of the ball.
" Number Three is the tactical leader and must be a long powerful hitter to feed balls to Number Two and Number One as well as maintaining a solid defense. The best player on the team is usually the Number Three player.

" Number Four is the primary defense player and though he can move anywhere on the field, he often tries to prevent scoring.

Polo ponies
The term pony is purely traditional and the mount is actually a full-sized horse. A good pony should have docility, speed, endurance, and intelligence. It is said that the pony is 60 to 75 percent of the player's skill. Thoroughbreds were originally the only breeds used, but in the contemporary sport mixed breeds are common. Many of the best polo ponies are bred in Argentina and United States. Polo training begins at age four and lasts from about six months to two years. Ponies reach their peak at around age 10; but without any accidents, polo ponies may have the ability to play until they are 18 to 20 years of age.

Equipment
The basic dress of a player is a protective helmet, riding boots to just below the knees, and a colored shirt bearing the number of the player's position. Optional equipment includes knee pads and spurs, face mask, and a whip. The outdoor polo ball is made of plastic, but was formerly made of either bamboo or willow root. The indoor polo ball is leather-covered and inflated and is about 4? inches (11.4 cm) in diameter. The outdoor ball is about 3? inches (8.3 cm) in diameter and weighs about four ounces (113.4 g). The polo mallet has a rubber-wrapped grip and a webbed thong, called thumb sling, for wrapping around the hand. The shaft is made of bamboo-cane with a bamboo head 9? inches in length. The whole mallet weighs about 7 ounces and varies in length from 48 to 53 inches. The ball is struck with the side of the mallet rather than the edge.
Polo saddles are English-style similar to jumping saddles. The legs of the pony are bandaged from below the knee to the ankle to prevent injury. The pony's mane is clipped, and its tail is braided to prevent interference with the rider's swing.

Facts about polo
" The oldest royal polo square is the 16th century Maidan-Shah in Isfahan , Iran .
" The oldest polo club in the world still in existence is the Calcutta Polo Club .
" The highest polo ground in the world is on the deosai Plateau Baltistan, Pakistan at 4307 meters (14,000 ft).
" Polo must be played right handed. Left handed play was ruled out in 1975 for safety reasons. To date, only 3 players on the world circuit are left-handed.
" The most prestigious international Polo Tournament in the world is the Palermo Polo Open, held annually in Buenos Aires, Argentina.

" The most prestigious Polo Tournament in the USA is the US Open Polo Championship held in Wellington, Florida in April where the top players in the world compete.
" Argentina has been the uninterrupted world champion since 1949 and is today the source of most of the world's 10 goal (i.e., top-rated) players.

Related sports
" Buzkashi involves two teams of horsemen, a dead goat and few rules. It is the national game of Afghanistan and a possible precursor of polo.
" Horseball is a game played on horseback where a ball is handled and points are scored by shooting it through a high net. The sport is a combination of polo, rugby, and basketball.
" Kokpar is a Kazakh game similar to Buzkashi.
" Polocrosse is another game played on horseback, a cross between polo and lacrosse .
" Pato was played in Argentina for centuries, and may be the reason Argentines excel at polo.

Polo variants
Polo is not played exclusively on horseback. Such polo variants are mostly played for recreational or touristic purposes; they include canoe polo , cycle polo , camel polo, elephant polo, Segway polo and yak polo .

Spirituality with a shrug and smile comes to very few and believing that India has a wealthy legacy of traditions and wisdom to offer, more than just being the heir to dad Deepak Chopra's legacy, the guru in the making for some candid spiritually. Here's Gowtham Chopra for you?

Are you deeply spiritual yourself--
I don't know. I can't say that I am a deeply spiritual person. But yes, having grown up in the atmosphere that I have and in the family that I belong to, I am very comfortable with myself and in tune with my spirituality. I don't make an effort to be spiritual.

And what is it you do--I am an artist writer. I believe my role is to tap into the creative potential of people and the youth that I meet, and get them to express their inner storehouses of wisdom.

Your role here in India--
India has a great storewell of inner wisdom and traditions, stories, myths -- anthologies of knowledge if you will. I want to convince people, especially the youth, that it's their ideas that matter. They are relevant, and they need to be creative and package it to the world.

Internet blog, online spiritual platform--
It was an organic evolution. It began with me and dad, Shekhar Kapur, and sister Malvika mailing each other about stuff, questions, thoughts... People like Rahul Bose have been friends for years and he uses the blog to focus on tsunami relief. We are just making use of this hobby of blogging that is catching on to improve whatever we can.

What are your spiritual challenges--
There are tremendous challenges in tapping latent wells of wisdom and tradition. It's not just IT and entertainment companies that we need to build but we can find it within ourselves to find ways to improve the world.

As William H McNeill puts it, "The rise of Islam offers perhaps the most impressive example in world history of the power of words to alter human behaviour in sudden, surprising ways." True to the quote, but there is much more when it comes to how individualistic perception is developed. Correspondent Nidhi Jain spoke to Khalid Sayeed, head of programming, IMG Media, about his beliefs and faith.

By Birth-
Born on 5th of September, this family man has been very religious and balanced; his then family consisted of five siblings i.e. Four sisters and one brother. In the process of learning, taking knowledge from saner voices and observing, he became a great believer in power but not to the level of going berserk.

Religion-
Is without a doubt Shahrukh Khan. And a good ambassador can be Azim Premji. Khalid thinks that it's very difficult to propagate religion. "How George bush can't teach Christianity. Since in our religion the villains keep changing, few bad elements always manage to retain themselves and ultimately it seems sad that we didn't end up becoming communist."

Values-
Khalid's greatest influence has been his grandmother Amina, who taught him that one can't be a good human being if one is not religious. "The strain of caring for one's parents in this most difficult time of their lives is considered an honor and a blessing and an opportunity for great spiritual growth. In Islam, it is not enough that we only pray for our parents, but we should act with limitless compassion, remembering that when we were helpless children, they preferred us to themselves."
He also has an enormous understanding of different religions since he was brought up among Christians and Hindus.

Belief-
If we have to talk about Khalid's belief, his extreme faith is in Supernatural power and fasting through which six senses are controlled, makes one calmer; one can't lie, to respect women and more importantly feeding the poor. He also believes in Guru Nanak, Mahavir, Gautam Buddha and Sufi Saints. Khalid also believes that as long as the world exists there will be presence of good and bad, but we should never lie low in front of FATE.

Khalid's beliefs do not extend to wife Aditi, however, who is an atheist, while son Sohail and daughter Raisa celebrate every existing festival with enthusiasm.

Rituals-
Khalid believes in praying for a minimum of 5 minutes a day, but not bowing down. Also, he specifically doesn't follow rituals.

Divine visit-
It's his wish to visit five pillars, termed as "Zakat", all practicing Muslims accept belief in the 'Six Articles of Faith' and are obliged to follow the 'Five Pillars.' They are:
Muslim profession of faith or shahada; Ritual Prayer or salah; Obligatory Charity or zakah; Fasting or sawm; Pilgrimage or hajj.

Spiritual guidance-
Khalid used to read "haddis", a collection of incidents in Prophet Mohammed's life, but he is very disheartened that today in madrasas kids read without understanding and today it seems irrelevant as his fellow members of his religion read scriptures without understanding.

Positive thinking-
Comes from real life. Also, his pillar of strength is mother Zubeida, who survived riots and a disabled father. As he recalls his grandmother, Amina and father Muniruddin were mocked during the 1992 communal riots that hit Mumbai. To make matters worse, their's were among those families that were targeted to be looted. As a result it made them rebellious and angry with the whole scenario but in those testing times they were taught not to behave like those butchers/killers. "Sometimes, when I am cornered, then I become superstitious," says Khalid.

Karmology-
His religion decrees it is compulsory to offer 2 per cent of income as charity to be donated to poor people. Since Khalid is not of scared of failure, negative thoughts don't affect him. To him, it's all about the learning curve and his own Karma. He quotes from the Quran, "You are the best of my creation, and I have given you the option to think. If you do wrong and repent I'll still forgive, if you turn a good person you change your Karma."

Relaxing spiritually-
Sleeping! A lot under any given circumstances, if in dire need he asks for divine help and feels it deeply. "It was wonderful to have time to reflect on my own spiritual life and those reflections have resulted in some changes in our family's life," says Khalid.

Are you Destiny's child?
"I am absolutely destiny's child. Very few people have influence on me, I don't take diplomacy as my fate and that makes my life simple," says Khalid.

The countdown has begun. Nine days to go until we know the winner of the Fifa World Cup 2006, which is currently underway in Germany. All thanks to media proliferation in India, the hype for football has never been as much as it is this time round.

While cricket still rules in the hearts of our top industry honchos; football has now managed to carve a niche for itself. What's more, many executives have either already been to Germany or are on their way there to catch the action live as it happens.

However, what better than mixing work with pleasure and that's what people like Sam Balsara (Madison Communications chairman and managing director), G Krishnan (TV Today CEO and executive director), Uday Shankar (Star News CEO), I Venkat (Eenadu TV director), Srinivasan K. Swamy (RK Swamy BBDO CEO), Madhukar Kamath (Mudra Communications managing director and CEO), Vinod Berry (Sony Entertainment Television (SET) India Ltd. senior vice president revenue management) and Joy Chakraborthy (Zee Telefilms executive vice president network sales) will be doing today (30 June).

The Indian Broadcasting Foundation (IBF) and Advertising Agencies Association of India (AAAI) have their joint body meeting in Hamburg today and the Indian television and media team will head to the stadium to catch the Italy versus Ukraine match soon after wrapping up work. (We'll surely be watching out for them on television tonight!)

Now let's take a dekhho at what games drives our industry. Ever wondered what do Star India CEO Peter Mukherjea and SET India CEO Kunal Dasgupta have in common apart from each being the head of a television company? Here's what? they both love to play golf. But since we're kicking a bigger ball here, let's find out what their football mantra is.

Peter Mukherjea

While Dasgupta went to Germany to catch the Brazil versus Japan match, Mukherjea, on the other hand, despite having tickets for the semi-finals, is not too keen on going all the way!

"I do like football but I am not keen on going all the way to Germany for the matches even though I got the tickets for the semi-finals. I enjoyed the Brazil versus Ghana match, though the result was expected. I do catch up with most of the matches keeping aside the late night matches," says Mukherjea.

Dasgupta is gung ho over his experience in Germany. "The experience of watching the teams live is just awesome and amazing. My all time favorite team is Brazil but this time Portugal is gaining my attention. As far as players are concerned, there is no one who stands out this time but my favorite player is Miroslav Klose from Germany," he says.

However, both Dasgupta and Mukherjea believe that Germany stands a good chance to steal the show this time round as home ground and home crowd support plays a vital role.

Raveena Raj Kohlli

Sundial Creative Media Pvt. Ltd founder Raveena Raj Kohlli loves watching cricket, football and Wimbledon. "All the hype around football is because of great marketing and excellent presentation. It is a fresh and lively game. Even a person who does not know much about the game can watch and enjoy the matches," she says.

However, she regrets the fact that she can't go to Germany to catch the matches there unlike some of her peers. "Many of my friends did catch up with the matches there and according to them the place is unbelievably boisterous. The stadium is jam packed with people from all walks of life, enjoying, shouting and freaking out," she adds.

Commitments at work have even deprived Kohlli of watching most of the matches on TV. "I was not even lucky enough to catch up with the Brazil-Ghana match, which I wished to watch desperately. Of the others, I could hardly view a few. The Australia-Italy match was an awesome one," she

says. But she's adamant that she's not going to let anything deter her from watching the finale on 9 July.

Times Now vice president and editor-in-chief Arnab Goswami is another one of those die hard cricket fans but has been bent towards football lately, more likely due to the fatigue factor that has been surrounding cricket.

"People are hardly interested in the test series going on in West Indies after the Fifa World Cup began. They have sort off switched to a new game, which is more lively and exciting. It is also because of the cable and satellite penetration that the game is getting such hype. Even the news channels are doing two to three shows a day analyzing football and are neglecting cricket to a great extent," he says.

Due to incessant work demands, Goswami literally lives life in his office and hence catches all the matches there with the Times Now sports bureau. But the news man is now going to leave his abode and head to Europe to catch one of the matches - not in the stadium but in a London pub! "I was looking forward to the Brazil- Ghana match but it was a total disappointment. I was quite impressed with Ghana though but it has ruined my expectations," sighs Goswami.

Lynn de Souza

Goswami, like all Indians, is backing Brazil and his favourite player is Ronaldo. "I feel Germany and Brazil will reach the finals as many factors like local support and good performance count a lot for the two teams," he says.

A tennis player and a fan of the game (of course), Lintas Media Services director Lynn de Souza is clued on to tennis more than football. But being in the media business, one has to be abreast with the happenings all around and that's what de Souza does. "I don't really watch the football matches but I manage to keep a track about what's happening as people around me keep me in the loop and I also read up on it," she says. However, as the drama unfolds and becomes more exciting on the field, de Souza will be glued to the television to catch the live matches. Backing Brazil, she feels that either her favourite team or Argentina will grab the Cup this year.

She is of the opinion that because India did not play too well in the cricket World Cup, the viewership has drifted towards football. "Matches are being telecast in the primetime slots and this is affecting the regular viewership. This shows what a hype football has taken all of a sudden. The kind of promotion newspapers are giving Fifa is tremendous. Something of this sort has never happened before," de Souza says.

Here we have another die hard cricket fan in Buena Vista International Television (India) director Amit Malhotra but at the same time, he likes football too and prefers to watch it in a pub or bar with some like-minded people.

Malhotra feels that the sudden bent towards football is a combination of a few factors. "One of them is the way India performed in the last Cricket World Cup and also because we've had an overdose of cricket in the past four years. What's more, media is also giving hype to this cause. In the next two - three years football will be a very popular sport in India," he says.

Patronizing Argentina just this once, Malhotra (whose favourite team is Brazil) is looking forward to the Germany - Argentina match. "In the past, Brazil - Japan match was just too engrossing. The first goal made by Japan was heart-taking. My heart supports Brazil to all extents as the team is very talented. My all time favorite player is Ronaldinho as he rocks. I feel Brazil is definitely going to grab the Cup because it is the best and the most consistent team. It is one team, which plays without any pressure on their mind. They are the ones who enjoy the game to the fullest," says he.

Keertan Adhyantaya

Cricket has a fan club member in Vh1 general manager Keertan Adhyantaya too, who is of the opinion that no other game can create the fervor that cricket generates in India. "It's just the explosion done by the media that football is getting such hype. A few years ago, there were hardly two news channels and those too were not giving it so much of importance. But now with the phenomenal development in the cable and satellite industry, every sport is managing to find its place under the sun," he says.

However, notwithstanding that Adhyantaya has managed to latch on to the football fever with family, friends and colleagues. "For the finals, I will be going out with a few friends to a club and watch the event on the big screen," he reveals.

While his favorite team is Portugal, his gut tells him that Brazil will be taking the cake this time too.

So whether it's Brazil, Portugal, Argentina or Germany; one thing's for sure? however much our execs might love cricket? they are all clued on to football fever for sure!